Teachers say they are drowning and it's
happening here and around the world now
before we drill down on Portland issues,
let's kind of broaden this out a little bit
in New York schools are so short staffed,
they've been asking teachers experiencing
COVID symptoms to come back to the classroom.
In Chicago, classes resumed in person
yesterday after teachers walked
off the job for close to a week,
demanding stricter safety precautions
and teachers in France followed suit.
Today going on strike until they
get better rules to keep COVID
infections at Bay now in Portland.
Nothing nearly that severe has happened here,
but teachers have been writing into us,
exhausted by this latest pivot back in
a lot of cases to remote learning and a
lot of them are also confused about the
metrics districts are using to choose
between remote and in person classes.
And then there are issues like
the one Katrina highlighted.
She wrote one thing I want to point
out is how shortages of support staff
paraeducators and teacher Subs.
Impact teachers in my district
when they can't fill a subrequest,
teachers are asked to sub during
their prep planning time.
This situation, she added,
leads to stressed and exhausted teachers
who then end up physically sick,
which perpetuates the problem.
Now.
It's not always easy to get teachers
to talk on camera.
They often worry it could cost them their
jobs and we completely get that concern.
But amid this latest surge,
that worry is falling away,
three teachers spoke to our Christine panic.
I made the Ambrosio and I
teach at Roosevelt High School
and I'm Laura Fisher. I also teach
at Roosevelt High School. I'm
Doug Robertson. I teach 5th grade at Powell
Valley Elementary School in Gresham Barlow.
My name is Nicole Szafranek.
And I'm an old teacher.
I'm at McDaniel High School.
Three of the teachers we spoke to are
currently teaching remotely because
there were too many COVID related
absences and not enough substitute
teachers to keep their schools open.
They tell me it wasn't a surprise.
I mean, we had 25 staff out on Tuesday
and we had 16 unfilled Subs. We've had so
many students staff
absences since school began.
It just seemed like surely we are right
there on the cusp of this happening.
To us they mean we all kind of saw it coming.
I just wish there had been more
planning in advance so that we're
not scrambling like we we are today.
Just like we don't know
what's going to come next.
Nicole Softronic says she never could
have imagined a situation like this,
but clearly we're at a crisis level.
I'm a little bit speechless that
this could possibly happen that
you would have to close schools
because there aren't enough adults.
Things have just been so reactive,
it's just. I mean I keep saying it's
like we're lurching from crisis to crisis
and it's all taking a heavy toll
on teachers and students alike.
Not only are we dealing with students
with mental health and anxiety,
you know issues and anxiety and depression.
Our staff are reporting and sharing
with colleagues just how much mental
health struggles they're having as well,
they say previously.
In the pandemic there was more
emphasis on social emotional learning.
Students had fewer class periods
which resulted in less pressure.
But this year Laura Fisher
says instructional minutes are
being prioritized instead,
and this year it was like,
Yep, everything is fine.
We're all back to normal.
We're going to go back to 8 classes.
We're not going to have any
of that social emotional
time that's like carved out,
and so then teachers are
put in a position of saying,
I know this is what students need.
But also I'm not trained as a social worker.
There's been this huge pressure
to somehow get kids caught up.
Because the the belief is that
kids are behind academically
and there are real concerns
about a loss of learning.
But they say the strategy right
now isn't working for kids.
Students are acting out
or not showing up at all.
Teachers are stretched thin,
stepping in to help colleagues
cover classes without substitutes.
We came to the administration saying
we're drowning, you know we came to
PPS and we said our kids are drowning.
And now in this latest COVID surge,
teachers are at their breaking point.
We know what amazing student support
looks like, and when you can't do it,
and it's because you're under resourced,
it stabs you in the heart.
I love teaching and I'm one of those 1000
teachers that thought about leaving.
This is my whole heart and everything that I.
Everything that I love about teaching
nourishes my mind and my soul.
In the Gresham Barlow School District,
Doug Robertson knows the feeling up
until this year I have always been a
person who was like I will never leave.
I love teaching. There's nothing else
I would rather do and this is the
first time when I'm like I get it.
I understand we're seeing
people leave at alarming rates.
He's on unpaid leave,
not teaching in person.
On the advice of his doctor, I
would be teaching from home,
but we were never given the chance
to do an online option, so I.
I had to make a choice between
my health and my students.
I have a 2 year old who
is immuno compromised.
She has a heart defect.
He says it's frustrating that safety
protocols don't seem to add up.
He says educators are only meeting virtually
even if they're masked and vaccinated.
Why is it safe to pack 35 kids
into a classroom right now?
Teachers right now at their wits end
trying to juggle safety and mental
health issues all while trying to
do their jobs with fewer resources.
And less time to do it. It's
a slow moving train wreck that
we've seen coming all year long.
OK, Christine Padawan is joining us now.
So Christine, Speaking of
Portland schools specifically,
a lot of them are going back
to online learning because of,
frankly very low staffing levels,
and now we're seeing
pushback from the district.
Yes, in fact, earlier today we
received a letter from the head
of Portland Public Schools HR.
We got a chance to look at it.
It was sent to teachers and it
said some last minute teacher
absences were quote concerning.
In part it said we are getting
regular reports of educators being
asked by colleagues to call in
sick with the intention of causing
the district to close schools.
It is unlawful for educators to
participate in any sort of coordinated
action to be absent for anything.
Other than a legitimate
reason under district policy,
OK, so definitely not mincing words.
Have you gotten a response from
the teachers union at this point?
Actually, the Portland Association of
Teachers did issue a response earlier
this afternoon to that district letter.
They say PPS is quote out of touch with
what's happening in our schools and As
for that accusation that teachers would
call in sick in order to cause a closure.
While the Association of
Teachers says that is off base,
demoralizing to all educators
and an insult to our profession.
So yes, Maggie absolutely not mincing words.
And, uh, really, I think heightened
state right now with so many people.
Anxious and really just on edge.
Yeah, definitely. Those tensions are
escalating alright. Christine Padawan,
which for us Christine thank you.